Page 63 of Tear Me Down
Chapter twenty-two
Ashia
Two Days Later
‘Ashes of Eden’ – Breaking Benjamin
Damien and I are back at the conference table, waiting for Carter and everyone else to arrive. He called all of us in because the facial recognition software from Interpol finally came back with results, as well as the analysis of the USB drives we uncovered, and the chemical compositions of the new drug Dust has been putting out. His hand is laced with mine, and his leg won’t stop bouncing. The signs from his anxiety have been prominent since the run in with the human traffickers a couple of days ago, and he hasn’t been able to calm down since. He isn’t sleeping well, and he’s extremely irritable. Not with me, of course, but I can tell just from how he’s been with the men.
After the mercenaries displayed their loyalty and dedication to protecting us in that yard, he’s allowed them to guard the house while I’m home so Zeke can spend more time with Tay. I’ve still gone to the Attic every other evening, but I’ve been so tired and worn down the past couple of days, I’ve just gone home after work. Zeke drives me, but then the mercenaries take over until Damien gets home.
There’s six of them at all times, even when we’re not home, and while I know the extra numbers help with Damien’s worries, it doesn’t take them away. He’s been desperate for this information, and now that we’re about to have it, he might explode.
The door opens and Mr. Hartley walks through it, surprising us both. Damien squeezes my hand before he stands up.
“Dad? What are you doing here?”
Mr. Hartley shakes his head and walks over to stand beside us.
“I’m not sure; your technical specialist called me in.” He pats me on the shoulder and looks down at me with genuine concern. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay, thanks.” I smile softly at him, and Damien squeezes my hand again.
“Why would Carter call you in?” Damien asks his dad.
“Because this involves him.” Carter says as he, Zeke, and Alex walk in, immediately taking their seats around the conference table. “Alright, let’s start with the drug analysis.”
“I want to know who that fucking woman is,” Damien seethes and smacks his hand harshly on table, clearly running out of patience. He’s still standing as his dad rounds the table to take a seat, and I don’t miss the subtle look of agreeance he passes his way.
“We’ll get there, I promise, you’re going to want to hear the rest first.”
I squeeze his hand again and pull his arm gently, gesturing for him to sit down. He takes a deep breath and sits in the chair, pulling me close and wrapping his arm around my shoulders—careful not to aggravate my graze wound that has since bruised, but at least the swelling has started to go down. We look at the presentation screen as Carter pulls up the lab results and broadcasts them, showing lists of the active pharmaceutical ingredients and something called “excipients.” It’s nothing but a long list of chemical compositions and long names that I can’t even pretend to understand.
“Yeah, don’t worry, Ash. You’re not the only one,” Carter chimes in, and I can’t help but giggle a little. “I’m going to simplify this for everyone. So, the main ingredient is Ecstasy, which is no surprise there, considering the side effects we’re seeing.”
“Right, but that doesn’t explain the deaths. There can’t be that many people overdosing so easily,” Damien adds.
“That’s where it gets interesting.” Carter zooms in and scrolls down a little to show us a long name typed out, next to a percentage and some other long number. While I look at it as nothing, Damien’s grip on me tightens as he sits up straighter. “Batrachotoxin, otherwise known as BTX.” Carter says it correctly.
“That’s a mouthful.” Zeke chuckles, but as I look up to Damien, he’s anything but amused. His jaw is clenched, and his lip is almost in a snarl.
“What is it?” Mr. Hartley asks Damien, looking back to see his distress.
“That’s what they used to poison Ashia with…” he shakily reveals, and I grip his hand again, knowing how hard this is for him. I glance over at Zeke, and his playful demeanor has completely vanished. His features have glazed over with an anger that I haven’t really witnessed from him, and I'm unsure if it's related to our newly revealed familial ties, or if the topic is just unsettling for him.
“The side effects that we see in the overdoses are the same as hers when she was attacked. Convulsions, muscle contractions, salivation, respiratory muscle paralysis, heart arrhythmias, and last, but definitely not least, cardiac arrest. It takes effect in just a few minutes.” Carter trails off, leaving the room in silence for a moment, and unfortunately, I have to be the one to break it—to keep Damien from spiraling out of control.
“So, what does that mean? Their goal is to kill people now? What sense does that make?”
“Well, the concentration of the BTX is very low. So, while we’re seeing some of these side effects, it’s not as drastic as it was when you were poisoned. While it’s killing some people, it’s obviously leaving enough alive to drive interest in the other addicts.”
“So, where is this going?” Damien asks angrily, obviously no longer interested in this particular topic.
“That’s where it gets interesting.” Carter moves on, opening a new tab and projecting it on the screen. “With the information we got from Turk, I was able to back track through real estate sales, LLCs, and corporation ownerships. You’ll never guess who’s listed as the owner of the pharmaceutical company.” Damien perks up at that question and waits eagerly. “Victoria Avery.”
The world around us seems to stop abruptly as the link between Dust and the Washington Senator finally comes to light. Carter presents one of apparently the few pictures of her. She’s standing off to the side in what looks like a press conference, holding her hands in front of her body to appear professional, but there’s a haunted look in her eyes. Something that hints at the horrors she’s witnessed. After a moment for us to process her name and image, Carter continues.
“Now, I’m not sure why it’shername, and not her father’s, because she has no real education past a listed private academy that doesn’t exist, and she’s barely on any records. Anywhere. She has a birth certificate and social security number, but anything past those documentations, there’s nothing. No hospital records, doctors’ visits, loans, no credit whatsoever. Nothing.”
